Today marks the 78th anniversary of a new era in American brewing: December 5th, 1933 was the end of Prohibition. While the number of independent brewers were on the decline leading up to 1919, the 18th Amendment decimated the brewing business altogether. Very few breweries survived the ban on alcohol leaving it up to them to supply the skyrocketing demand for suds. The era was also tainted with the blood of organized crime lords like the infamous Al Capone and the federal agents that sought to bust up their underground operations. Brewing has bounced back and the American beer scene is getting better by the year, making even the Europeans jealous.